The first Cross Solent main was installed underneath the Solent in 1980 to help support water supplies on the Isle of Wight.

More than 25 years later, Southern Water decided the pipes were getting old and needed replacing.

We gained the support of the water industry regulators, The Environment Agency and Ofwat, which determine how we supply water and how much money we can spend.

We also gained planning permission from the Isle of Wight Council and New Forest National Park Authority.

The new £15 million scheme to replace the pipes and secure water supplies for the island for years to come started in 2003 when the early preparations got underway on the land.

On the mainland in Lepe, Hampshire, workers drilled two 56 cm diameter holes and pulled 1,165 metres of new supply pipe through each hole to emerge on the seabed.

In Gurnard, on the Isle of Wight, workers also drilled two 56 cm diameter holes and pulled 740 metres of supply pipe through to the seabed.

The contractors used a specialist technique called directional drilling to help keep disruption to residents and the environment to a minimum. This involved using a drilling tool underground – a bit like a mole.

The pipes on the shore have been connected to the existing water supply network in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and when in place the new Cross Solent Main pipes will be connected to these.

In addition, pumps at Mopley in Langley, Hampshire, were enlarged to be able to send the extra flows to the Island.